Google’s New Program to Take on Indian AI Startups Globally

Google has announced a new Market Access Program to support Indian AI startups in expanding their business outside of the local markets, and seeking global customers. The move is coming as India’s A.I. industry evolves from test projects to full-blown products in areas as varied as health care, farming and education.

The program was unveiled at the Google AI Startups Conclave and is meant for startups that already have functioning AI products but struggle to sell them to big companies overseas. The aim, according to Google, was “to assist these companies in going from early success to steady global growth.”

The selected startups will benefit from global sales support, strategic cooperation opportunities from Google’s global partners and will gain exposure to international markets. They said that this is where startups frequently hit a wall — not because of technology, but rather out of skepticism and lack of market access.

Google also noted it will maintain full backing for Indian startups: Cloud services, advanced AI tools, security systems training and access to funding. Startups will also have access to the AI and cloud structure that Google relies on worldwide. The company also emphasized its upcoming Global AI Hub in Visakhapatnam — a large data center it says will help foster the long-term growth of India’s AI sector.

In an effort to drive more innovation, Google unveiled new open AI models geared directly toward both health and device-based applications. One of them, MedGemma 1.5, is designed for larger scale health care needs and can analyze medical scans and lab reports. AIIMS said it is already collaborating with Google to develop technologies to support national health projects. A second model called FunctionGemma is intended to let fast AI tools run directly on devices, for instance, when there is no internet or it’s slow.

Industry data presented at the event revealed that strong growth was on the horizon. India’s AI market could be worth $126 billion by 2030, a new report suggests. Many firms are now throwing less money at computing costs and more at creating better products, buoyed by India’s investment in digital infrastructure.

Google also highlighted Indian startups employing AI to achieve real results, including businesses that improve care in hospitals and extend access to early education. As Indian AI firms look to expand globally, the company said trust, safety and privacy are increasingly becoming a competitive edge to winning over long-term customers.